Tony La Russa even messes up AJ Pollock’s return to lineup

The good news is that AJ Pollock is back in the lineup for the Chicago White Sox. He was outstanding in the first few games of the season before he left for paternity leave along with a minor injury that he was dealing with.

He should provide a tremendous spark to the batting order now that he is back. He can hit for power at times and puts the ball in play as anyone in the lineup has so far this season. This is good news for the Chicago White Sox. Hopefully, he is able to come back as strong as he was before he got hurt.

The problem is that Tony La Russa is obsessed with Leury Garcia so he is hitting second in the batting order instead of Pollock. Normally, Luis Robert should be hitting second but he is out dealing with something himself.

It is honestly sad at this point. Garcia’s batting average going into this game is 0.69 and his WAR is -0.5. Pollock’s return is being overshadowed by this decision. The guy who leads the team in WAR, Adam Engel, is on the bench which is even worse.

It doesn’t stop there. Jake Burger, who has been one of the team’s best hitters to open the season, is batting ninth with Reese McGuire (the defensive-minded catcher) hitting ahead of him in the eighth spot. It just doesn’t make any sense at all.

Hopefully, AJ Pollock injects some life into the Chicago White Sox batting order.

Michael Kopech is on the mound which is nice to know. He is the only player on the roster that has not participated in a loss so far this season. Hopefully, that remains true by the time this game against the Minnesota Twins is over.

Kopech will face Bailey Ober who gets the start for Minnesota. It is a pitching matchup that favors the White Sox on paper but their bats need to live up to that. It is going to be hard with a lineup like this but it is time that this team starts winning in spite of the bad lineup. If Leury Garcia pops out with two outs and the winning run on third, however, you know why.